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AYF’s ‘With Our Soldiers’ Campaign Reports to Community on Progress

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Armenia map colorGLENDALE—For the past two months, the AYF’s ‘With Our Soldiers’ campaign has been actively fundraising and distributing financial assistance to the families of fallen soldiers in Armenia and Artsakh. In the spirit of accountability, the campaign has provided periodic updates to the community on its fundraising efforts and the work done on the ground in Armenia.

The task force, appointed by the AYF Central Executive to administer the campaign, has published a report on its progress during the past two months. According to the information provided by the WOS initiative, as of June 30, 2016, the task force has raised over $105,000 and provided assistance to the families of 63 fallen soldiers in Armenia and Artsakh. As a reminder, the campaign allocates a $1,000 payment to each family and an additional $250 for each child of a fallen serviceman.

The breakdown of the numbers of families reached in each region of Armenia and Artsakh is included below:

  • In Armenia, a total of 39 families of fallen soldiers were assisted, with the following breakdown: Armavir (7 families), Yerevan (7), Gegharkunik (6), Kotayk (6), Ararat (5), Shirak (4), Lori (3), and Aragastotn (1)
  • In Artsakh, a total of 24 families of fallen soldiers were assisted, with the following breakdown: Hadrut (9), Stepanakert (6), Martuni (3), Martakert (2), Shushi (2), Kashatagh (1), Askeran (1)
  • A total of $76,500 has been distributed in aid as of June 30, 2016, with $33,000 allocated to families in Artsakh and the remaining $43,500 in Armenia.

As of July 4th, funds were being allocated to another 13 families in the Syunik province of Armenia. A total of $14,500 has been earmarked for the families of soldiers and volunteers from this region, who were killed during the Four Day War.

In addition to the monetary assistance provided to the families of fallen soldiers, the AYF’s ‘With Our Soldiers’ initiative has also coordinated the shipment of $480,000 worth of supplies and medication for the wounded soldiers and servicemen protecting Artsakh. The breakdown of those items is provided below:

Medication – $160,000

Wheelchairs/Mobility-related items – $100,000

Sleeping bags – $80,000 (totaling 2,000 sleeping bags made in the US)

First Aid Materials – $30,000

Other Supplies – $80,000

In addition, a $30,000 donation was secured through the Carolan Foundation, which was directed toward securing 2,000 more sleeping bags manufactured by Desi LLC located in Echmiadzin (Vagharshapat), Armenia.

The ‘With Our Soldiers’ campaign expresses its gratitude to all of our donors and sponsors for their contributions and commitment to our brave servicemen defending Artsakh and the families of our fallen heroes. Special thanks go to Global USA Shipping Company, Universal Service Exchange Inc, the owner of Olympic Pharmacy Hakob Basmajyan and San Francisco-based businessman Erik Marutian for the key role they played in making the delivery of vital supplies to Armenia and Artsakh a reality.

Additionally, the task force is appealing to Armenian-Americans urging them to make monetary contributions and donations of goods to the campaign (see flyer below for details). Donations can be made online, at www.withoursoldiers.com, or by check, payable to the Armenian Youth Federation (mail to 104 N. Belmont St. #313, Glendale, CA 91204). We remain confident that with continuous support from our friends and our community, we will be able to reach out to the remaining families of our fallen soldiers and provide the necessary aid to our wounded servicemen.

The AYF’s ‘With Our Soldiers’ campaign, originally launched in 2012, was restarted in the aftermath of the Four Day War with the aim of providing assistance to the families of the fallen soldiers. To learn more about the campaign or to make a donation today, you can visit www.withoursoldiers.com.

Founded in 1933, the Armenian Youth Federation is the largest and most influential Armenian American youth organization in the world, working to advance the social, political, educational and cultural awareness of Armenian youth.

OSCE PA MP: Armenian soldier’s beheading while still alive is Islamic State “handwriting”

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beheading armenian soldierTBILISI. – The Armenian side does not disseminate pictures and facts that attest to how Azerbaijani soldiers barbarically kill Armenian military servicemen, with the objective of undermining the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process.

Artashes Geghamyan, head of the National Assembly of Armenia delegation to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA), on Saturday stated the aforesaid on the second day of the 25th Annual Session of the OSCE PA, which is convened in Tbilisi, the Armenian News-NEWS.am special reporter informed from the capital city of Georgia.

“The main emphasis [of the peace talks] is placed on the complete fulfillment of the conditions aimed at confidence-building,” noted Geghamyan.

As per the Armenian MP, however, Azerbaijani soldiers are killing and beheading Armenian servicemen, and posting the respective photographs on the website of Baku State University.

“When they behead Armenian military servicemen while they are alive, this is the ‘handwriting’ of the Islamic State terrorist group; all these people earn state awards,” added Artashes Geghamyan. “We [i.e. the Armenian side] don’t disseminate all these facts so that the negotiations don’t stop. So, please pay attention to what proposals for changes a party is making.”

As reported earlier, six criminal cases were initiated into the Azerbaijanis’ killing of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR/Artsakh) Defense Army servicemen and torturing of their bodies during the hostilities in early April.

NKR General Prosecutor’s Office Prosecutor Karen Gabrielyan had told Armenian News-NEWS.am that three separate criminal cases were instituted into the beheading of Kyaram Sloyan, Hrant Gharibyan, and Hayk Torosyan.

In addition, criminal cases are launched into the murder of Rafik Hakobyan, Aghasi Asatryan, Andranik Zohrabyan, and Robert Abajyan

Another criminal case was opened into the torturing of the bodies of fifteen NKR Defense Army servicemen.

Relatives of those killed have been recognized as successors of the victims.

Based on these cases, human rights organizations will prepare petitions to be submitted to the European Court of Human Rights.

Kurdish forces PKK have wounded 12 Turkish security officials in bomb attack in Turkey’s southeast

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PKK wonded turkish soldierA total of 12 security officials were wounded in a bomb attack by the  Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the Nusaybin district of the southeastern province of Mardin on June 1. 

Two police officers and 10 soldiers were wounded when PKK  detonated a bomb they had hidden in Nusaybin, where a curfew has been in force since March 14.

The wounded security officials were taken to Nusaybin State Hospital, where the treatment of five officials, including one in critical condition, was continuing.

Seven security officials received ambulatory treatment.

Security operations in the district were ongoing.

Case of murdered and decapitated Yezidi-Armenian soldier by Azerbaijan is registered by ECHR

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decapitating yazidiYEREVAN. – The case of murder and decapitation of the body of Armenian soldier Kyaram Sloyan has been registered by the European Court of Human Rights, chairman of Yezidi “Sinjar” NGO Boris Murazi told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

The applicants – the Sloyan family, “sinjar” NGO and “Protection of Rights without Borders” NGO –  demand to recognize the acts a war crime.

During Azerbaijan’s aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh in early April soldier Kyaram Sloyan was killed and beheaded. Photos of murderers with their “trophy” – Kyaram’s head – appeared on the web.

The Armenian soldier must be sure that his fellows will come for him

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Armenian soldierHay Zinvor  spoke to soldier, Sergeant Tigran Hakhverdyan. The soldier took the body of his dead friend from the battlefield. That’s all. Is that all? Is there a nobler deed in war? I don’t know. For me the noblest deed is not leaving your friend behind in the battlefield. That’s the main duty of a soldier.

Soldier, Sergeant Tigran Hakhverdyan received a medal “For Courage” for his heroism.

“Hello Tigran,” I say shaking the soldier’s hand. “Can we talk?”
He tries to look away.

“Do I have to tell you?”
“Yes. Why did you put your life in danger? You knew that he was dead.”
…Our friend, our Sasha had to return home…
He looks around without looking at me.

“The Commander returned. He talked to Deputy Commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Hayrapetyan for half an hour. We were waiting. The Senior Lieutenant Nalbandyan asked who would go with him, I came forward.”
“Did you understand the risk you were taking?”

“I wasn’t thinking about that. The wounded Commander was going for his soldier, and I was going for my friend.”

Tigran notices that I’m confused.

“During those days we were all ready for anything. I just was the first one to come forward.”

“Wasn’t the area targeted,” I ask a rhetorical question.

“We reached the viewing area by an open road, found a shelter in a hole dug for a tank, reached the zigzag road. Our friend was there. Sasha opened fire towards the adversary with his ‘Utyos’ (NSV 12.7mm Machine Gun)… Didn’t manage to load the machine gun… We knew he had died, but with the Commander we were going to save him. The soldier must be sure that his fellows will come for him, that he won’t be left alone…”

Tigran puts off his hat. Looks at the sky. I also look at the sky – clear and bright.

Source Panorama.am

Karabakh: Armenian soldier killed amid Sargsyan-Aliyev meeting

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soldier-karabakh-border-696x464Military authorities in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) said an Armenian soldier was killed overnight as an internationally mediated meeting between the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan aimed at reinforcing the ceasefire regime in the conflict zone was in progress in Vienna, Austria.

According to the NKR Defense Ministry, 20-year-old conscript Khachatur Harutyunyan was fatally wounded at 00:50 Yerevan time at one of the positions in the southern direction of the line of contact with Azerbaijan.

The Karabakh side accused Azerbaijan of continuing to violate the terms of the April 5 verbal agreement on cease-fire on the night of May 17 by using firearms of different calibers as well as armored vehicle guns, mortars and grenade-launchers.

Particularly intensive ceasefire violations were reported in the southern (Hadrut) and eastern (Martuni) directions.

“The NKR Defense Ministry states that the whole responsibility for the consequences of the situation in the frontline lies with the Azerbaijani side,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry also reported a casualty near Karabakh overnight, accusing the Armenian side of violating the ceasefire. In a statement the military authorities in Baku also reportedly stressed the circumstance that the Azerbaijani serviceman was killed shortly after the Vienna meeting.

President Serzh Sargsyan of Armenia and President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan reportedly agreed late on Monday to respect ceasefire in the conflict zone and soon resume internationally mediated talks aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the dispute.

Kurdish forces PKK Neutralize 4 Turkish soldiers 14 wounded

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n_98599_1Terror attacks in two seperate Turkish provinces in the southeast killed five soldiers and two police officers over the weekend.

Two police officers were killed in a bomb attack on a police headquarters in the southeastern province of Gaziantep on the morning of May 1, Gov. Ali Yerlikaya has confirmed.

At least 18 policemen and four civilians were injured in the suspected car bomb attack that was carried out around 9:20 a.m.

Private broadcaster CNNTürk reported that the blast occurred in front of the barriers of the headquarters.

Two cars entered the area in front of the headquarters and started firing with automatic weapons, with police responding to the attack, reported daily Hürriyet.

One of the cars managed to escape, while the second car exploded, according to reports. The police have begun a search to apprehend the other car involved in the attack.

Footage from a CNNTürk broadcast showed pieces of a wrecked vehicle near the station’s gates, several ambulances and fire brigade trucks at the scene of the blast, which it said was felt from kilometers away.

The wounded were taken to a hospital, where one police officer succumbed to his injuries.

Security measures were increased in front of the aforementioned hospital.

Armored police teams and ambulances were sent to the area, as buildings surrounding the station were evacuated by the police after the attack.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said investigations into the attack are ongoing.

“We’ve reached significant information, but the Interior Ministry will make the necessary statement in due course,” Davutoğlu said.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has received information about the attack from Interior Minister Efkan Ala and spoken on the phone with Governor Ali Yerlikaya, according to presidential sources.

Meanwhile, four Turkish soldiers were killed and 14 were wounded on separate May 1 attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in the southeastern provinces of Mardin and Şırnak, according to reports.

Three soldiers were killed and 14 were wounded during a military operation in the Nusaybin district of the southeastern province of Mardin, the Turkish Armed Forces said in a statement.

The attack in the town, where a number of neighborhoods are under curfew and operations have been ongoing since March 14, came as the soldiers were detonating a bomb placed by the militants on Nusaybin’s Çağçağ Street.

Three soldiers, identified as gendarmerie specialized sergeants Serdar Yıldırım, Sinan Oruç and Hakan Duygal, were killed in the attack, according to the official statement by the Chief of Staff.

The wounded soldiers were brought to state hospitals in Nusaybin and central Mardin, according to reports.
In a separate attack on the same day, a soldier was heavily wounded after being hit by a PKK sniper during an operation in Şırnak’s İsmetpaşa neighborhood.

The injured soldier, whose identity was yet to be disclosed when Hürriyet Daily News went to press, was promptly transferred with an armored ambulance to Şırnak State Hospital, where he later succumbed to his wounds.

The attack came one day after the army announced that an army captain was shot dead by a PKK sniper in Nusaybin.

Captain Alper Kalem was wounded in clashes that erupted when a group of soldiers were trying to remove bombs on the streets at 7 a.m. local time on April 30.

Kalem was taken to hospital but later succumbed to his wounds.

Meanwhile, in the same neighborhood two police officers and one soldier were injured in a rocket attack on an armored vehicle.

Early on April 30, the military had stated that Turkish warplanes destroyed PKK targets in northern Iraq.

It said four F-16 and 14 F-4 jets carried out the raids on positions in Kandil, Hakkurk and Avasin between 23:00 p.m. and 1:40 a.m. local time.

It added that a pair of F-4 warplanes also carried out two airstrikes on PKK bases in the rural Güneycam area of the southeastern Turkish province of Şırnak.

New Zealand soldiers witness and rescued victims of Armenian Genocide

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SCCZEN_220416SPLARMENIAN2_620x310These moving stories show that New Zealand soldiers were not just pawns in a game of empires, and nor were ordinary citizens isolated from traumas elsewhere. They rescued victims of the first genocide in modern history, the horror of which would move Raphael Lemkin to coin the term genocide in 1943 and begin building an international legal framework to outlaw crimes against humanity.

The powerful links between New Zealanders and victims of the Armenian Genocide are, however, cast in a different light because, despite the wealth of evidence presented in newspapers, diplomatic cables, trials, governmental archives, and the words of the victims themselves, the Turkish state – from 1918 to now – denies that a genocide took place.

This forgotten past, now uncovered, brings into question the special relationship that exists between Australia, New Zealand, and Turkey. Can New Zealand state officials stand on a platform with Turkish officials at Gallipoli knowing that they actively refuse to acknowledge the truth of what happened to the Armenians? Knowing now that New Zealanders risked their lives for the survivors?

Karabakh soldier killed in Azerbaijani fire

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210579On Tuesday, April 19, at around 9:50am, a Karabakh serviceman, Gavorg Gevorgyan (b. 1996) was killed in Azerbaijani fire.

An investigation into the details of the incident is underway, the Nagorno Karabakh Defense Ministry said.

On the night of April 1-2, Azerbaijani armed forces initiated overt offensive operations in the southern, southeastern and northeastern directions of the line of contact with Nagorno Karabakh.

The Armenian side has suffered 77 combat and 15 non-combat losses, 122 more were wounded. One soldier is still missing.

The Azerbaijani side has lost 26 tanks and 4 infantry fighting vehicles, as well as 1 BM-21 Grad multipl e rocket launcher, 1 engineering vehicle, 2 military helicopters and 14 unmanned aerial vehicles. The Azerbaijani side has admitted the loss of 31 fighters, 1 helicopter and 1 unmanned drone, whereas the Armenian side’s photo and video materials show dozens of killed Azerbaijani troops, 1 helicopter and 3 UAVs. Opposition media outlets, however, reported on the death of 95 Azerbaijani soldiers, stating that 39 more have been wounded. According to Karabakh authorities, 300 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed in clashes.

14 Karabakh tanks have been neutralized since April 2.

The parties to the Karabakh conflict agreed on a bilateral cessation of fire along the contact line which came into force at midday, April 5.

The conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan

The conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan broke out as result of the ethnic cleansing launched by the Azeri authorities in the final years of the Soviet Union. The Karabakh War was fought from 1991 (when the Nagorno Karabakh Republic was proclaimed) to 1994 (when a ceasefire was sealed by Armenia, NKR and Azerbaijan). Most of Nagorno Karabakh and a security zone consisting of 7 regions are now under control of NKR defense army. Armenia and Azerbaijan are holding peace talks mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group up till now.

Karabakh general: Azeris shot their fleeing soldiers

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Karabakh GeneralSTEPANAKERT. – The resumption of military actions by Azerbaijan didn’t come as a surprise. Turkey had to move the combat theatre to another place, and apparently had to choose Azerbaijan for this purpose.

MP and Major General of the Karabakh National Assembly (NA) Vitaly Balasanyan said the aforementioned on Public Television of Nagorno-Karabakh.

“This didn’t come as a surprise to us, since Azerbaijan  had begun preparing for war since the moment of signing the ceasefire agreement on 12 May 1994. The signing of this agreement was a serious political mistake for us. This was followed by the information disseminated by the Azerbaijani media outlets, events in Turkey and Middle East. It should have been clear to us that Turkey would move the combat theatre to another place, and this could be only Azerbaijan, Turkey’s shelter in the Caucasus. We should have felt this earlier. We should have analyzed the developments,” Balasanyan said.

In the night of April 2, when Azerbaijan unleashed its aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh, the general headed for the 4th line of defense which led furious fighting without any losses. According to the general, only two soldiers sustained minor injuries.

“Azerbaijan should understand that the issue cannot be solved through military means. The World War III has started long ago, but no superpower confesses that it has started,” Balasanyan stressed.

In his words, on the first day the main attack was directed against Aghdam, and then in the southern and northern directions. The goal of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces was to breach defenses in the center and separate two parts of the Defense Army from each other, the general noted.  But they didn’t manage to do this, he added.

The Karabakh Defense Army managed to retaliate on time and open aimed fire.

According to the MP, the Azerbaijani side suffered colossal losses and failed the offensive operations, despite leading a literate battle. “Currently the Azerbaijani Army is more improved. I’m sure they were seriously prepared, and weren’t weak tactically: one shouldn’t downplay them. Our task is to mobilize in the shortest period possible and deploy in order to come into positions. The adversary supposed that we wouldn’t be able to come into our positions after the rocket and artillery bombardment. All the roads along the frontline came under fire. This wasn’t an illiterate fight from their side. Moreover, it was easy for them to attack, since they had drones and could watch the fight from above,” the general said.

But why didn’t the Azerbaijani army achieve success? Because there are few people in the Azerbaijani army who are ready to struggle for their homeland. “The lowest echelon of the Azerbaijani army is constantly oppressed. We can see what is happening at their hungry and thirsty posts. We can see this both from the air and from our posts. Not every soldier there is ready to stand till the end. I’m sure that at least 80 percent of the Azerbaijani soldiers don’t consider it as their homeland,” he said.

The general also added that they saw the Azerbaijani militaries shoot their fleeing soldiers.